May 24, 2012

News Update: May 24, 2012

NEWS UPDATE: May 24, 2012

We in the Muppet fan community know all about Paul Williams, scribe of songs in The Muppet Movie, The Muppet Christmas Carol, Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas, and more. However, the general public is vastly unaware of Williams' incredible contribution to the world of music. That is what filmmaker Steven Kessler is setting out to remedy in his new documentary Paul Williams Still Alive. The film follows Williams in present day and chronicles his storied career as well. The trailer is below and features plenty of Muppets. Paul Williams Still Alive premieres in New York on June 8th and goes wide soon after.

The fine folks at Destination Vinylmation have snagged pictures of three new Star Wars Muppet action figures to be released at Disney Parks later this year. Last year they released action figure sized versions of Kermit as Luke Skywalker, Link Hogthrob as Han Solo, etc. The new figures feature Animal as Boba Fett, Link Hogthrob as Han Solo in Carbonite, and Scooter as Lando Calrissian. They are set to be released in August and will be priced at $18.95.

One of my favorite things is watching people who adore and understand Muppeteers get to interact with them. That is what we get to see in the latest video on The Nerdist Channel from Harry Knowles. In the video below, Knowles and his puppet doppelganger get the chance to meet and talk with Caroll Spinney. There's not much more I can add about this beautiful thing, so watch it for yourself!

In the weirdest news of the week category we have a brand new product from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab Perfumes. Why does this matter, you ask? Because the perfumes are scents based on Jim Henson's Labyrinth. Take that in for a minute... okay, yeah, that's a weird thing. Scents include 13 Hours, Fairy Bites, Goblin Cider, Hoggle, and Jareth. These are things you can actually buy and then smell like. Why anyone would want to smell like Hoggle (who apparently smells of fermented pumpkin, brown leather, dust, tobacco leaf, and dark woods) is beyond me, but to each their own!

In other weird news, the Muppets have teamed up with BAND-AID Brand bandages for a brand new iPhone/iPad application called Band-Aid Magic Vision Starring Disney's The Muppets (catchy). I can't even begin to explain what the app does, so here's an official statement sent to us from BAND-AID Brand people plus a video that shows how surprisingly cool this app is: Your favorite Muppet characters are being featured in a brand new, first of its kind, mobile application launched by BAND-AID® Brand! The app— BAND-AID® Magic Vision—uses augmented reality (AR) technology to provide parents with an unprecedented ability to help their kids forget about boo-boos, and transform moments of hurt into moments of healing and virtual fun like never before!

Finally, enjoy this awesomely amazing behind the scenes video from roughly 1977 featuring Jim Henson, Richard Hunt, Jerry Nelson, Dave Goelz, and a bunch of awesome people performing and building Muppets and just being amazing. (Video found by our friends at ToughPigs.)